His Heart's Desire
by AHealingRenaissance
Summary: This is a series of one-shots. They should be pretty well in chronological order, and all are Norribeth because James deserves his heart’s desire even if she doesn’t deserve him!
1. The Proposal

Title: His Heart's Desire

Chapter: The Proposal  
Author: Tammsla  
Pairing: James/Elizabeth  
Rating: PG-13  
Period: COTBP

Beta: allmightypen

Disclaimer: I own nothing and nobody except for Miss Tamara Anderson. Also, the line "my utmost care and devotion" came from someone else's POTC fic, but I can't for the life of me remember whose. If it's yours please tell me and I will credit.

Summary: This is a series of one-shots. Some chapters will be several one-shots of the same scene, like this one, where I can't decide how I want it to go so I just write everything. They should be pretty well in chronological order, and all are Norribeth because James deserves his heart's desire (even if she doesn't deserve him!).

**I. In which James does not get to propose**

Elizabeth Swann gripped her fan tightly in her hand and sagged inelegantly against the colonnade as her vision darkened and the falling sensation made her head swim once again. She'd told her maid Estrella not to make her corset strings so tight, but of course the maid would not hear of her mistress being less than correctly attired. 

"Even if 'correct attire' means 'loss of oxygen', I suppose," Elizabeth muttered bitterly to herself. Her vision cleared once more, Elizabeth straitened her spine and, taking as deep a breath as she could manage in the elegant instrument of torture, strolled over to take her place among Port Royal's elite. Captain – no, Commodore Norrington, as he was now, was being promoted today. A slight smile graced her lips as she thought of the handsome Naval officer. His beautiful piercing green eyes, his deeply resonating voice, and his wry sense of humor had long ago captured her heart, though of course she could not tell him so; it would not be "proper", after all. 

"Propriety be hanged!" Elizabeth thought to herself. She knew James would propose as soon as he had the income her father would deem necessary in a man to whom he would give his only child; had known, in fact, since her debut… 

She still remembered how he'd appeared at her side, his green eyes darkening almost to black. She hadn't completely understood the emotion smouldering in that gaze, but it sent delicious shivers down her spine. They danced and flirted; she was surprised to see this side of him. He had always been gentle with her when she was a precocious child, answering her questions with indulgent smiles and patient words. That was, until the last few months when her father had made her settle down into more ladylike pursuits, bought her more grown-up dresses, and started talking about smart matches with fine men. James had suddenly turned reticent, barely speaking more than the absolute necessities of civility when they chanced upon one another at a ball or a soiree. She had had an inkling as to whom her father was thinking about, but with the flightiness of youth had dismissed any suspicion when James changed so drastically. Until that dance. He'd held her tightly in his arms, almost beyond what was proper, yet still managing to appear perfectly casual to anyone who might have been watching. The pressure of his hands, the feel of his lean muscled chest pressed against her own curves had sent waves of unknown emotion spiraling through her and from the way his lips trembled and his breath grew ragged, he had to be feeling the same. That was the beginning of Captain Norrington's courtship – "onslaught," as she privately thought of it with a satisfied smirk – of the governor's daughter. 

That had been two years ago. Now as the Royal Marine Guard marched through the stone arch, drums pounding, Elizabeth stood up a little straighter and craned her neck to catch her first glimpse of James in his new uniform. As he strode past her, hands clasped tightly behind his back, she caught his eye for the briefest of moments and managed to catch the subtle wink he sent her way. He took his place on the dais and her father presented the new Commodore with the sword he had had commissioned in honour of this day. James swung it expertly, slicing through the air and generally handling it as an extension of his own arm. Elizabeth watched admiringly until his part of the ceremony was completed and her father launched into the long speech she had been subjected to not less than three times already that week. Her ribs were aching from the boning in that blasted corset and her vision once again darkened as she struggled not to sway back and forth. 

At long last, her father was finished speaking and the company were dismissed to the courtyard where the musicians were tuning their instruments and servants had laid out a lavish banquet. 

Elizabeth stole away to a doorway leading to the battlements, hoping no one would notice her absence. As her head began to swim again, she swayed a bit on her feet, putting a hand to the wall for support.

"May I have a moment?" 

Those silky, dulcet tones could only belong to one man, and as she turned to James with a smile on her face, she briefly reflected that she should have known he would notice her absence no matter how short.

"Of course, Commodore," she lightly teased. With a wry smile of his own, James offered her his arm and led her to the battlements. Elizabeth felt herself coming to a bit more with the cool breezes blowing in from the waters of the Caribbean. She relaxed against a wall as James released her hand and walked two steps away from her, turning aside for a moment.

As he turned back to her, she noted his eyes had darkened from their normal jade to a deep emerald. He took one shaky breath and smiled nervously.

"You look lovely, Elizabeth."

He seemed at a loss for a moment and understanding pervaded her mind as she realized she was about to faint. She searched her mind wildly for a moment for a way to tell James she needed help without abruptly cutting him off.

"Thank you, James." She smiled as best she could while struggling to catch a breath.

James furrowed his brow in concern at the tone of her voice. Surely this breathy tone could not belong to his Elizabeth?

"Are you well?"

"Yes, I am well enough when I can catch my breath," Elizabeth replied, somewhat dispiritedly James thought. Surely his proposal could not be unwelcome? They had talked often enough about their future together.

Seeing his uncertainty, Elizabeth sought to reassure him.

"My father, bless his soul, gaveme a new dress, but unfortunately it requires a tighter stay than what I'm used to. He swears it's the newest fashion in London, though I assured him that women in London must have learnt not to breathe." 

James smiled at her joke, grateful both that it was not his advances that caused her discomfort and for the familiarity that had grown between them during her childhood and his recent pursuit which allowed such an open conversation between them.

"Well then, shall I have a maid brought to you? You may go in my office and loosen it somewhat if you like. There is a sturdy lock on the door, of course." And James had every intention of standing guard himself, though Elizabeth did not need to know about that.

Elizabeth thanked him prettily and he felt emboldened. 

"May I encroach on another moment of your time when you are more comfortable?" James looked very much like a hopeful, endearing little boy in that moment. 

She met his inquiring gaze, an unspoken promise shining unmistakably in her eyes.

"Of course, James. I shall always have time for you."

**II. In which Governor Swann plots and plans**

"May I have a moment?" 

That beautiful voice could only belong to one man, Elizabeth thought vacantly to herself. Her stays were digging into her sides most painfully and her lungs could not gain more than half their required air. 

"Yes, of course."

As the new Commodore led her to the battlements, Elizabeth could have sworn the Caribbean had suddenly found itself in possession of a rushing mighty waterfall. She was equally positive it was situated just behind her.

"Ah, you look lovely…Elizabeth." Glancing quickly at the handsome profile of the man next to her, Elizabeth noted that his composure was not what it usually was. He seemed almost…nervous. Elizabeth didn't have time to think this thought through as he was continuing in his address, having taken a few steps away from her.

"I apologize if I seem forward, but…I must speak my mind. This…promotion throws into sharp relief that which I have not yet achieved….a marriage to a fine woman." Here he turned back to her, his gaze much sharper than she had ever seen it directed at herself. 

"You have become a fine woman….Elizabeth."

"I can't breathe!"

His eyes widened in the realization that her pale countenance and unsteady breathing was not in response to anything he might have been about to say, but because she was about to faint. 

His long legs covered the distance between them in two quick strides, and as he caught her up in his arms, he caught the eye of a passing servant and directed him to find Miss Swann's father.

A few moments later, Governor Swann swept up the steps to the battlements, his gaze connecting with Norrington's.

"I can not carry her, and I don't trust the servants not to drop her. Commodore Norrington, would you mind very much carrying my daughter to…ah…"

"My office would seem the best place at present Governor."

Swann's eyes twinkled as he agreed, knowing just how much this young man would not mind such a task. Norrington situated his precious burden in his arms and when the Governor was conveniently looking elsewhere, he dared nuzzle her temple and even pressed a quick discreet kiss to her brow. Swann remembered fondly holding his own Miranda thus many years ago. 

"Apparently fainting runs in the family," he mused to himself.

As the two men reached Norrington's office, the Governor instructed another servant to find a maid for his daughter and went in to chaperone the not-quite-engaged couple. 

Norrington laid Elizabeth on the settee and held her hand, having deemed it too far outside the realm of propriety to continue holding her; even with her father's unspoken blessing, if not outright consent, a servant was to appear at any moment.

As a maid came through the door the two gentlemen left the room to stand guard outside. Neither made any attempts at conversation, but both were very aware of the situation and were having very different thoughts. Norrington was still anxious as Elizabeth had seemed to not really hear what he was trying to ask, and Swann was thinking how contented he would be when Elizabeth was settled with so fine a man who truly understood her independent spirit and would keep her reigned in without smothering her in their married life.

At last, the maid came out and not feeling it quite proper to inform the gentlemen of the exact nature of Miss Swann's ailment, simply told them the lady had not yet awoken, but seemed to be breathing fine and would be much more comfortable when she did regain consciousness. With that, she left and Norrington led the Governor back inside.

Elizabeth felt herself coming to from what seemed a long distance down a dark hole. The first thing she became aware of was the fact that she could fill her lungs to capacity. The second was that she was being held in a pair of very masculine arms.

Forcing her eyes to open, she met the intense gaze of Commodore Norrington. She was at first confused, but soon remembered his anxious proposal…or rather, his anxious attempt at a proposal, she thought with a wry twist to her lips. 

Norrington was relieved that she seemed to be all right; she was smiling at least. Governor Swann quickly made an excuse to leave the room, and very nearly rubbed his hands together in anticipation outside the door.

"Ah, Miss Swann, you are…alright?" Norrington couldn't seem to get past the knot in his throat.

"Yes, I am, Commodore." She could think of nothing witty or amusing to gloss over this humiliating debacle and was quite sure she would never return to Fort Charles without blushing over it.

"Miss Swann, I—" He was cut off.

"Elizabeth." She smiled.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You called me Elizabeth earlier."

"I…yes, I did. Very well, then, Elizabeth." He smiled shyly back at her.

As he felt for the right words, Elizabeth thought to herself that though he would put her in a cage, as she had often thought of marriage as being, he would not clip her wings. He would let her be herself and she knew he would accept her because James Norrington had known Elizabeth Swann since before he was The Captain and she The Governor's Pretty Daughter. He understood her heart as she understood his. She knew most thought him a cold, intimidating kind of man; indeed, as the "Scourge of Piracy", Elizabeth knew he was a fearsome and deadly foe, but she also knew he would show her nothing but tenderness. 

"My dearest Elizabeth, you shall nothing but my utmost care and devotion, if you will consent to be…my wife?"

She felt her heart flood with affection and love for this kind, gentle man. When had she fallen in love with him? Her dear friend Will Turner had always made her heart turn over with his boyish good looks and crooked smile, but lately she was forced to admit her thoughts had been full of James Norrington more than any other man.

She could only smile as she took his hand in hers. 

"And you shall have nothing but my whole heart, my darling James."

His eyes shone more brightly than she had ever seen them as he drew her to him and gently placed a kiss upon her lips. As they drew apart, they looked at each other and both could not help a small laugh before they came together again, this time in a much more passionate embrace.

Governor Swann peeked into the room and quietly closed the door back. His thoughts once again dwelling on his own beloved Miranda, he smiled happily to himself. No need to disturb them for another five or ten minutes.

**III. In which I actually own a character**

"Elizabeth, are you alright?" Miss Tamara Anderson thought her friend looked decidedly peaked. Commodore James Norrington unknowingly agreed with this assessment from his place just behind the colonnade they were standing in front of. 

"Not really. Father bought me a new dress, and though I love him dearly, I must say he is really quite useless regarding female attire. The corset this dress requires is tighter than anything I've ever worn before in my life!"

At this, James's eyes grew wide and he realized he had been eavesdropping, a pastime not acceptable for a gentleman, but could do nothing about it as any movement on his part now would reveal his presence and undoubtedly embarrass his Elizabeth, given the current subject matter.

Tamara laughed outright at this tragedy. Everyone knew Miss Elizabeth Swann to be an utter hoyden when she could get away with it, though that was something Tamara (and a certain someone standing just around the collonnade, Tamara smirked to herself) happened to love about her friend. In so many ways, the two were like twins. Both outspoken, both hoydenish, both willing to say exactly what they mean. The only real difference between them was that as Tamara was only the daughter of an Admiral, as opposed to the Governor himself, she could get away with more. Since no one could advance their position in society through herself, the civilian population in Port Royal largely ignored her.

Elizabeth looked rather annoyed with her dearest friend.

"It's all well and good for you to laugh! My rib cage is so constricted, I can't get more than half a breath, my eyesight has been swimmy for the past hour, I see black spots when I stand still, and do you know I even swayed back and forth a time or two during the ceremony? Can you imagine how humiliating it would have been to suddenly drop right there in the courtyard as James walked by?"

Tamara simply smirked again and stepped back enough to catch the new Commodore's guilty glance in her direction. She pretended to think, watching him just long enough to catch the gleam that appeared in his eye when Elizabeth called him by his Christian name.

"Elizabeth, why don't I go and inform your father you're not feeling well?"

"Oh thank you, Tamara. You are a dear." Elizabeth walked a few steps into the sunshine, trying to catch the slight breeze blowing by at that moment.

"Think nothing of it." Tamara turned aside to hide her smirk and walked around to the smitten Commodore.

"You know, Commodore," she whispered, "I'm sure Elizabeth could not have failed to notice your attentions of late, and I'm equally sure that she would be most appreciative of any assistance you might render in her…hour of need?" Tamara quirked her left eyebrow suggestively before allowing her face to fall into an innocent expression. "I must go tell the Governor his daughter is unwell; I'm sure that will take about five minutes." With that she sauntered off, pausing only to be sure the Commodore had actually moved.

"Miss Swann? I believe you are a bit pale. Is there anything I can do for you?" James was positive his heart was about to beat straight out of his chest, but knew this was his best opportunity to show his Elizabeth, as he thought of her, that he would indeed care for her needs should she consent to marry him.

"Thank you, Commodore. My friend has gone to inform my father, but I should be grateful for your company if you would? I am feeling a bit faint and not at all certain I shall be able to remain conscious until she returns." This was said with a self-deprecating smile.

James returned her smile with a tender one of his own as Tamara returned seemingly without any prior knowledge of the Commodore's presence.

"Miss Tamara, how are you this afternoon?" James asked courteously.

"I am well, Commodore, but you see my dear friend is not. In fact, we are in need of your assistance." Tamara met his gaze with a sassy yet innocent look, knowing full well she should have inquired after his own health, but knowing equally well how quickly the small slight would be forgiven by the besotted man. 

"Oh? How can I be of service?" James returned her look with an equally innocent one of his own.

"Miss Swann is feeling faint. I wonder if you might have a servant sent to her so that she may….go lie down." Tamara might have known that James knew exactly what Elizabeth needed and seen the concern for Elizabeth in his eyes, but Elizabeth did not and Tamara would not embarrass her friend by revealing her knowledge when she was feeling so poorly…though naturally, once Elizabeth was tended to, Tamara would tease her mercilessly. She smirked mischievously to herself thinking about it.

"Of course." James instructed a passing servant and offered Elizabeth his arm.

"If I may escort you? I believe my office is the most comfortable in the fort."

"Thank you, Commodore." Elizabeth had been silent up until this point, primarily because she could see something was going on that she did not know about and she wanted to see what would happen. A stab of some strange emotion forked down her insides….surely she could not be jealous? The Commodore had been paying particular attentions to herself since he was a Lieutenant and as he rose through the ranks, they had become more pronounced and as though he finally saw her as an equal instead of as a child…and Tamara had her eye on Lieutenant Gillette, so surely there could be nothing…romantic between there?

She took James' arm and waved goodbye to her friend with a touch of warning in her voice that she did not realize was there and which made Tamara laugh. 

"Yes indeed. I think I shall be a bridesmaid before the year is out!" Tamara smiled to herself. 


	2. The Kidnapping

**Chapter II: The Kidnapping**

**Title: His Heart's Desire**

**Author: tammsla/the mouse in the opera house**

**Beta: teh amazing saimejoxxers, who nudged me repeatedly for more :D THANK YOU!! :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own POTC and Commodore James Norrington does not reside in my closet…shoves James back inside and closes the door….:innocence:….**

**Word Count: 17,525**

**Warnings: Nothing other than an occasional beheading, stabbing, kidnapping, and people being threatened with pistols.**

**Pairings: Norribeth!**

**Summary: This is a series of one-shots. They will follow the chronological order of CotBP only, since I didn't really care for DMC or AWE (my beta writes those much better anyway xD). Each one-shot stands alone and proceeds from a different part of the movie. Some will have James and Elizabeth engaged already, some won't. Some may have a thread woven through it from a previous one-shot, or take up where the last left off, but they are not built on each other and are totally independent of each other :D**

**Author's note: I asked several people for help with my writer's block, so thank y'all for your help :D june7rose came up with the following premise and my beta saimejoxxers and I took it and ran with it, so a huge thank you to her for this and for all the hard work she put into several ideas for this chapter :D**

_**A pirate could be in the crowd, interested in the medallion and push her over so they can kidnap her and she could get on the Pearl that way rather than the way in the movie.**_

Chapter 2: The Kidnapping

Elizabeth confidently moved through the throng of Port Royal's elite toward her fiancé. Just before entering his line of sight, she paused to consider the man who had stolen her heart so long ago. He was the finest man of her acquaintance and she had loved him since they first danced together at her debut when she was but sixteen.

As the Governor's daughter stood thinking of her adolescence, she lifted one hand without thought to the bodice of her gown to grasp the coin cloistered within. As her fingers rubbed the leering grin of the "Pirate's Coin", as she had dubbed it, James Norrington seemed to sense the gaze of his lovely bride-to-be and turned to her with a look much akin to that of a little boy whose every dream had just come true and could hardly believe it. His smile was soft and her heart melted afresh.

As if he suddenly remembered there were, in fact, others who might easily perceive his emotions, James quickly mastered himself and inquired as to the health of her father. Elizabeth saw this with amusement and assured him of Governor Swann's continued good health, even as she began a silent discourse of her own with him.

"So the Commodore is among us once more," her private smile observed.

"Only in public, my dearest," his eyes twinkled back.

As he dropped his gaze, the Commodore's eyes came to rest on that which was still in her hand and as they flicked questioningly back to those of his fiancée, she in turn looked to see what had so intrigued him.

Realizing her Pirate's Coin was in plain sight of anyone who cared to peruse the crowd, Elizabeth quickly settled it back into the confines of her bodice with a hasty apologetic glance at James.

Unfortunately, James was not the only man to have seen her actions.

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Shifty eyes missed nothing. He hadn't been given the moniker Snake because he looked like one, but rather because he had mutinied twice and would have again had it not been for…that.

Unfortunately, _that _precluded all hopes regarding the current Captain's demise for the present. Snake had felt immediate revulsion upon first sight of that gold. Something about the grinning death's head turned his stomach the way no rum ever had. When the others laughed him to scorn for not partaking in their riches, he had merely remarked with satisfaction upon his own riches gained from that voyage. When it became apparent that the curse was, indeed, a reality, some had sought to lay blame on him as Snake was the only one not under the same curse.

Fortunately, Snake had taken to making himself useful in hopes of gaining favour with Hector. It had certainly paid off; he had survived those first few years when resentment was at its hottest, and now he was in a position to raise himself aboard ship and take his vengeance at the same time. Rather a convenient arrangement, in his opinion.

When Barbossa's spies had returned from Port Royal saying the last piece was in the Governor's mansion, Snake assumed they knew that the Governor's mansion was the only place Hector would accept as being unreachable, other than the fort itself, and surmised that they had simply failed in their mission.

Barbossa was never one to ask for volunteers. Knowing Snake was a former Navy man, and something of a gentleman at that, he simply ordered him ashore, giving him three days to bring the gold to the Pearl.

Now, as the double-tongued rogue watched the Governor's daughter surreptitiously tuck the very coin he had come for back into her bodice, his eyes slid to the girl's fiancé. Every pirate knew the name of the Scourge; only Snake knew his face.

Quickly he slipped behind a colonnade, thinking furiously. He realized the best way to exact his vengeance upon his enemy would be to harm the one he loved more than himself. Snake knew James – his lips twisted at the name – would gladly give his own life to save another; he'd certainly been willing to save their former Commodore……

**Ten years earlier:**

_The eldest son of an impoverished Earl, the Midshipman should have been a promising young man. He would have been, were it not for his laziness, profligacy, and above all, his resentment of his younger brother. Alexander was known to grumble behind his brother's back, drinking more rum than the Commodore would have allowed had he known about it, and murmuring under his breath until the wee hours._

_He wandered the ship after his watch, stealing gold - and anything else small enough to be slipped into his pocket - from his shipmates. **He** was the eldest; **he** should have gotten the better commission, the larger inheritance. Oh he had gotten the crumbling Priory, the ratty carpets, the threadbare curtains; anything entailed on the eldest son. But what money there was, his father had made a gift of – thereby slipping through a loophole in the entailment – to his younger son. The same younger son who was the sole survivor of his mother's labour. She had died just minutes after the birth, along with his brother's twin. For this reason, and because his tastes were so like their mother's, James had always been his father's favorite; the one Father always sat in the library reading with, instead of hunting with Alexander; the one Father always went riding with, instead of having a drink with his eldest son. _

"_Well, Father, I'm certainly getting my share of the drinking now!" He groused drunkenly to himself. Leaning over the snoring form of a fellow drunken sailor, Alexander pocketed a gold watch from the man's clasped hand. _

"_Alex! What do you think you're doing?" James's voice boomed like a canon, waking the sleeping sailor and his bunkmates._

_Quickly, Alexander tried to cover himself. Affecting a slur more suited to a level of drunkenness that he had not yet attained, he said,_

"_Lookin for mah 'ammock o' course! Wot'sit look loik I'ma doin?!"_

_He could see James didn't believe him, but being "the honourable, patient son" he refused to out his brother in front of his underlings, preferring rather to wait until they were alone. _

"_Alex, I can not keep hiding your profligate ways from your superiors. You __**must**__ stop this at once. You will be court-martialed or even hung if you continue these activities!" James's eyes pled with the older brother he had always loved and wanted to look up to. He hadn't agreed to his father's gifting him with essentially their last farthing, but Father would not be swayed. In the end his father became so upset that the veins in his neck started to pulse and James capitulated, not willing to bring on another stroke and possibly hasten the demise of his weakened parent. He tried to give half the money to Alex, but as usual Alex was drunk and belligerent, refusing to have any part of it since Father had seen fit to refuse him._

_Alex sneered. "__**My superiors?!**__ They would not __**be**__ my superiors if you were in your rightful place, little brother!" With that, he strode away._

_James looked after him with weary, grief-filled eyes……_

_OOOOOOOOOOOO_

_Commodore William Fitzgerald looked out his window, purveying the ships under his command. The Intrepid, his flagship, the Valiant, and the Gallant were among the newest ships in the fleet. _

_Feeling rather proud of himself, the Commodore flipped his large feathered hat onto its stand and plopped his immense body down on his featherbed. He had attained his position on the strength of his deeds done in his youth, his father's money, and his charm. It seems the Admiralty admired courage as much as flattery and William Fitzgerald had excelled at both at one time or another. He was happy where he was and did not care for an Admiral's epaulets, growing fat and contented with his own three ships of the line._

_One minute he was lost in thought and the next there was the sound of battle outside and a pistol beside his ear._

"_Who goes there? What do you want?"_

"_Only what's mine, me dear Commodore."_

"_Norrington?! What the devil do you think you're doing man?"_

"_I believe it's called mutiny, sir."_

_Fitzgerald heard only the click of the pistol being primed before there was a great explosion from the doorway. Midshipman Norrington's pistol had been shot from his hand by Third Lieutenant Norrington. _

_The two brothers faced each other, one angry, the other grieved. There was no hope for it now; the two brothers would be separated, one hung, the other promoted…_

_OOOOOOOOOOOOO_

_Commodore Fitzgerald plodded out of his cabin and waddled to the railing. Noticing a lone figure staring out towards the horizon, he laid a comforting hand on the shoulder of Second Lieutenant Norrington. _

"_The promotion ceremony was not to your liking, I think."_

"_Oh, no sir! I am…truly grateful for such an honour…."_

"_But, your brother…am I correct?"_

"_I would wish things were different, sir."_

"_So would I. So would I."_

_OOOOOOOOOOO_

_Alexander picked the lock on his cell. As quickly and as quietly as possible, he and his compatriots slipped into the night, throwing barrels into the sea and swimming to the island they had spotted off the port bow half a day earlier._

_OOOOOOOOOOO_

Snake hissed through his teeth; that island had been his salvation and his damnation. That was the island Sparrow had found them on; the island Barbossa marooned Sparrow on. Unlike the Intrepid, the Pearl was easy to take. Pirates had much more comfortable codes of right and wrong.

Now was his chance. Now he could destroy his one time brother, break the curse that lay upon them, and gain Barbossa's favour all in one fell swoop.

He moved.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Elizabeth loved twilight time, when the sea was just coming in to claim the shore and the gulls called to one another to take their rest for the night. As the celebrations on his promotion were scheduled to continue far into the night, James had gone in search of refreshment for himself and his Elizabeth.

As she stood contemplating the peaceful rush of the waves around the fort, Elizabeth moved nearer the battlements. Looking down into the churning waters below, Elizabeth felt a presence at her side. Before she could turn to her fiancé, a masculine hand clamped hard over her mouth and the last thing she heard was the new Commodore shouting her name before a blinding pain and then nothing……

xxxxxxxxxxxx

"Should have been **me** captaining the Intrepid when that fat old biddy finally keeled over! Not that brat…always had everything handed to him on a silver salver……I should have been made Commodore today! It was **my** right! **I'm **the eldest! **My** career should have advanced at such a pace, _**not his**_!!"

Elizabeth could barely make out the murmured words formed by the voice snarling in her right ear. At first all she could comprehend was that somehow she was immersed in water and it was cold, but as the haze cleared she could make out eyes black as coal and cold as the sea she was being towed through.

The face was somehow familiar, yet Elizabeth knew she had never made this man's acquaintance. He was dressed as a gentleman of means, but his hands were rough; his speech refined, yet his voice harsh.

As she clung desperately to consciousness, Elizabeth heard her captor mumble something about a Captain Barbossa.

"Where are you taking me? What do you want? Who is this Captain Barbossa?"

"You ask too many questions!"

Elizabeth's last thought was, _Oh. That was a mistake_……

xxxxxxxxxxxx

James watched the man suspiciously as he approached Elizabeth. There was something ominously familiar about him, but the young Commodore could not quite..…the man put his hands on her.

"_**Elizabeth!"**_

Too late. They were gone over the battlements.

Theodore Groves and Andrew Gillette, his two best Lieutenants and closest friends, ran through the crowd of onlookers to his side.

"To the docks! We must get to them before they reach that ship!" James's voice boomed out over the fort like canon fire. Theo and Andrew looked out over the water to see the ship of which their revered Captain, now Commodore, was speaking.

Black sails and black hull: the Black Pearl.

The three stalwart young men looked to one another before ripping through the crowd again and dashing to the longboats stored on shore.

Snake swam as hard as he could; having heard his brother's cry, he knew his time was limited. If he could just get her to the Pearl, his plot could be counted a success.

In short order, he heard the sound of oars stroking through the water. His burden had just been hauled into the longboat when a shot whistled through the air just past his ear.

"_GO_ you scabrous cur! Get her to Hector; she's got the gold!" With that, the pirate's dirty arms strained at the oars.

Snake was left behind, but he still gave a sinister smirk. His brother would suffer. The crew could not be killed. Hector had the gold. All was going according to plan.

Or rather, all _had_ been going according to plan; for, like the good Commodore whose life he had sought to end, Snake was in pleasant contemplation one moment, and the next he found a cocked pistol at his ear.

"Turn around. Slowly." The deep voice of his brother had not diminished with time, but rather grown more commanding.

Snake plastered the sly grin back on his face and turned in the water.

"Hello, brother. Surprised to see me?"

James could not breathe for one transitory moment.

_How could—where did—when had he—get hold of yourself man! One-time brother or no, he has taken Elizabeth and you must save her!_

Noticing the astounded glances Theo and Andrew were throwing back and forth between them, James recollected himself.

"Indeed. What have you done with my fiancé, Mr. Norrington?"

"Oh she's just taking a little trip, little brother. I'm sure it won't be of long duration...nor without its amusements."

James caught the undercurrent in Alex's words. He knew what it meant for a young lady to be taken alone aboard a vessel of men long at sea, and pirates at that! Seeing the way his brother seemed to relish these thoughts, James realized time was running out more swiftly than even he had counted on.

James turned to Theo, noting the quizzical expression on the latter's face.

"Get him in the boat."

Theo reached out and grabbed the pirate by the scruff of the neck. Andrew watched silently before turning to James.

"I never knew you had a brother, James…?"

"I don't."

The calm in the Commodore's voice alerted Andrew far better than any battle cry that this…person, whoever he had been, was now nothing more than the fastest way to Miss Swann.

Once the pirate was thrown on his back to the floor of the boat, James locked eyes with Snake.

The Scourge rumbled low and menacingly, "Where. Is. She?"

Snake shrank back. This was not the brother he remembered; this was a man willing to do anything it might take to get the information he wanted.

_And I have no intention of revealing that information, my dear __**Commodore**__! _He thought viciously to himself, _After all, it is __**I**__ who should hold that rank now!_

The pirate smirked indulgently.

"Now wouldn't you just like to know, **brother**?" Snake enjoyed seeing the rage that flared to life in the intense gaze currently leveled at him. Oh yes, this was going to be easy.

"Mister Norrington," the pistol aimed at his heart rose to the level of his eyes. "You will tell me what I want to know, or your death will be a long and arduous one."

James gave a smirk of his own. "Do I make myself clear?"

Snake's face gave nothing away, but inside he was beginning to doubt his impetuously conceived plan. His cold eyes hid the very real fear that now coiled within his gut. With cold clarity, he realized he would not live more than another day before the Scourge of Piracy added his corpse to the line of pirates currently rotting in Port Royal's harbour.

_Very well then…if that's the way it must be……_

"You do, little brother. You do."

Snake felt for the back of his shirt.

"Perhaps she went south."

"Perhaps? Perhaps will not help you live any longer, pirate."

Neither Andrew nor Theo had ever seen their commanding officer this way. In battle, he was precise, focused, and deadly, but always merciful. If a foe was vanquished, they were not slaughtered like cattle the way some Captains were wont to do.

This James bore no resemblance to that man now. This was not their Commodore standing ready to strike. This was Miss Swann's fiancé.

"In that case, I think you will be joining her shortly."

Snake kicked an oar at his feet and as James's attention faltered for one second, Snake's hand closed around that which he sought.

"_**James!**_"

Gillette's cry was the only thing that saved him from the knife as it slammed into his arm, just inches away from his heart.

The Scourge looked at Snake.

Time was passing.

Elizabeth was in danger.

This pirate had taken her.

This pirate enjoyed the thought of those vile and dissolute creatures tou–

With deadly precision, Commodore James Norrington brought his sabre from its scabbard and in one stroke, the pirate's head was severed from his body.

As the three turned to watch the black sails capture the wind and carry her crew to points unknown, James turned back to Andrew.

"Return to shore. Ready the Interceptor. We get underway at dawn."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Elizabeth came to as she was being lifted onto the deck. Coughing up seawater, she caught her breath and her eyes met the intense stare of a rather disturbing little monkey.

The animal hopped over to a pair of worn and dirty boots, looking back quizzically at her before scampering up a boot-encased leg.

Following the monkey's progress with her eyes, Elizabeth's gaze collided with the owner of said leg.

Focusing on his craggy visage, she managed to utter only two words:

"Captain Barbossa"


	3. The Pearl

Aboard the Pearl

**Chapter III: The Pearl: Prevention and Retribution**

**Title: His Heart's Desire**

**Author: tammsla**

**Beta: teh amazing saimejoxxers, MAJOR thanks :D**

**Disclaimer: If I owned POTC or James Norrington, writing is not what I would be doing ;D**

**Word Count: 3,109**

**Warnings: Just stabbing, shooting, cutting, and hints of hypothetical rape**

**Pairings: Norribeth!**

**Summary: This is a series of one-shots. They will follow the chronological order of CotBP only, since I didn't really care for DMC or AWE. Each one-shot stands alone and proceeds from a different part of the movie. Some will have James and Elizabeth engaged already, some won't. Some may have a thread woven through it from a previous one-shot, or take up where the last left off, but they are not built on each other and are totally independent of each other :D**

**Author's note: I have NO talent for writing Jack Sparrow, and as he was needed rather urgently in this chapter, as well as the next couple of chapters, my friend notnahrrington volunteered to write his lines for me. Any Jack hilarity is due entirely to her, and I give her complete credit :D Thanks, Bea!!**

**The Pearl**

**I. Prevention **

"Captain Barbossa,"

Elizabeth took one look at the disreputable scalawag and understood why James thought them "vile and dissolute". His hat sported a feather that would make an ostrich jealous, and she was much in doubt his clothing had seen a bar of soap in recent memory.

Gathering her courage like a mantle about herself, Elizabeth lifted her chin and a spark lit her eyes. She was the daughter of the Governor of Port Royal. She was the most sought-after woman in the Caribbean. She would not be cowed by a man such as this.

"I want you to leave Port Royal and never return."

"I'm disinclined to acquiesce to your request." Barbossa's sneer was made up entirely of rotten teeth. "Means 'No'!"

"Very well. I suppose that you won't be needing this then."

Her palms were sweating. _But these pirates needn't know that,_ she mused to herself. Wrenching the leering pirate's treasure from her bodice, she grasped the chain between her thumb and forefinger and allowed the coin to fall haphazardly from her palm.

"_No!"_ Barbossa's whispered exclamation, along with the nervous jump of every crewmember aboard, told Elizabeth she had what they wanted.

"Captain Barbossa, I know not what your exact need for this coin is, but I do know where it came from."

"What be yer name, Missy?"

"Elizabeth-" She took a breath. If she gave her name, all was lost. "-Norton. I'm a guest in the Governor's household."

"Well, Miss Norton, how is it that ye came to be ownin that fair piece of jewelry?"

"It was a gift from a very old friend."

"An old friend, ye say? And just where might we be findin said friend?"

Elizabeth did not like the calculating look that entered into the pirate captain's eye.

"On an island near Kingstown." An idea began to form in her mind as she wrapped the chain back securely into her palm.

"And just what is it that ye be wantin in exchange for such information, Miss Norton?"

Thinking furiously on all she had learned of pirates and their code, Elizabeth remembered that exact wording was paramount. One must say exactly what one meant or risk certain snookering. She thought carefully before answering.

"I want you to call in your crew and cease your attack on Port Royal. I want you to put me – unharmed," She lifted a brow pointedly, "– into a longboat, then lower me in said longboat to the harbour. I want you to leave and never return to Port Royal. Ever. Again."

For one moment, the pirates gathered round her all stared in mute fascination at this mere slip of a girl who dared to use knowledge of their own Code – knowledge she should not even have! – against them.

Finally, Barbossa stepped nearer and addressed her in a jocular tone.

"That be a pretty tall order, Miss Norton. And just what might ye be thinkin o' givin us in return?"

This was followed by whistles and leers from the dirty brigands congregated on the deck. For one moment, Elizabeth's confidence wavered until she remembered the new Commodore's words from long ago.

_Her father had instructed the eager young Lieutenant to safeguard his daughter on the crossing from England. Lieutenant Norrington took his charge very seriously and felt that part of keeping the young girl safe was instruction on what to do if ever they were boarded and she captured._

_His gaze was earnest and piercing. "Pirates only want what they can gain pleasure from or turn a profit on. They only have pleasure in base things, of course, Miss Swann. Beatings and the like," He hastened to amend upon remembering to whom he was speaking. "But if pleasure denied means more gold in the end, they will often leave a hostage in the brig and forget all about them if the hostage keeps quiet and does not make a fuss."_

Elizabeth gleaned from gossip and pirate novels what he had been hinting at. If these pirates did not keep to the code, at least having told them she was "Miss" Norton, and a guest of the Governor, would ensure her virtue. An unmarried woman was only good for ransom if she were intact.

Taking solace from these thoughts, she once again raised her chin and replied, "I will give you the location of one William Turner II. The young man who gave me this coin."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The pirate code stated that in parley, each party must stick to their end of any bargain made in his or her name, and Barbossa had been as good as his word. After being thrown roughly into the longboat and lowered quickly to the water, Elizabeth revealed Will's location. Now as the _Pearl_ moved out of Port Royal's harbour, she had only to settle in to await her rescue.

Contemplating the reactions of the pirates when they found Will brought forth an unladylike giggle, but as her thoughts turned to the fate of young Will, her eyes dimmed somewhat. He had been her best friend on the voyage from England. They would play and explore all day until her father restricted her to her quarters.

Thinking of those evenings, Elizabeth smiled softly to herself. Lieutenant Norrington would always let her out and take her up on deck after her father retired.

When the epidemic had hit the ship, the sweet Lieutenant had been one of the few aboard who had already suffered the sickness and was therefore immune. He stayed faithfully with Will when Elizabeth became too gravely ill herself to continue sneaking down to care for him.

Elizabeth pictured the fine little tombstone engraved "Young William Turner II, died 1761". They had waited to bury him on land for Elizabeth's sake, since she was nigh hysterical at the thought of sharks eating his body. In the end, they held his service till the last, when Elizabeth had recovered enough to attend. She remembered how inconsolable she had been. James had picked her up in her quarters, held her in his arms in the longboat, and refused to set her down when they reached the shore. She had wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder.

Dear James; he had always been her protector…

She was broken out of her reverie by Barbossa's shout.

"Aye, I see the fine Navy men have come to rescue ye already, Miss Norton!"

Elizabeth glanced behind her and saw Lieutenant Gillette and a young sailor approaching her in a longboat. She smiled at him and turned back to the pirate.

"Don't you have a pressing engagement elsewhere, Captain Barbossa?"

"Aye, and I always keep me word! Let's hope ye've kept yours…" With that ominous unspoken threat, the pirate ship disappeared into the mist.

"Miss Swann! Are you injured?" Lieutenant Gillette's boat drew even with her own. As she settled into his boat, the sailor began rowing back to port.

"I am well, Lieutenant. The pirates have what they came for and they shall never return."

Gillette shot her a look of exasperation mingled with admiration. While Gillette would prefer a woman of more subdued tendancies, he had to admit his friend had certainly found a woman of good calibre. No other lady of his acquaintance could have gone toe-to-toe with armed pirates and come away unscathed; but it was the height of folly for her to attempt it. At least she had mettle to equal her husband, provided she accepted him.

These thoughts brought them to port, where Commodore James Norrington anxiously awaited them.

_Rather, awaited __**her**__…_ Gillette smirked to himself.

"Miss Swann, you are…uninjured…I presume?" James had been almost out of his mind when he saw his Elizabeth – for, though she had not yet given him an answer, he loved her and could not help himself thinking of her as being his – being lowered so roughly into the water. He had mastered himself before any but Gillette saw him, yet it had taken every ounce of temperance he possessed not to plow through the hordes of frightened people and injured sailors to get to her himself. Therefore he sent his most trusted friend to her in his stead.

"Yes, Commodore; I am well, as I told Lieutenant Gillette."

Still pondering on his friend's choice of a bride, Gillette decided to speak up.

"Miss Swann, if I may, I noticed that pirate called you "Miss Norton"…?"

As the men looked inquiringly down at her, both being much taller than she, Elizabeth's eyes took on a twinkle and her lips curved into a cheeky grin.

"Surely any pirate knows the Scourge of Piracy; I merely took a little liberty with the spelling."

Gillette broke out into a grin, which only widened as he watched James catch her meaning.

"Eliz - Miss Elizabeth - are you – can you be – are you accepting me?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Elizabeth sat at her desk in the morning room, staring out into the garden. She smiled warmly as she caught sight of her beloved husband playing with their two youngest children, Edward and Carrie. The two eldest, Mariah and Anna, were twins, and most likely both at the Governor's Mansion with their grandfather. _No doubt being spoiled half to death_, Elizabeth thought wryly.

Just then, Admiral Norrington caught his wife's gaze and they shared a secret contented smile, full of the warmth that came only from many happy and dedicated years together.

II. Retribution

Will Turner dashed up the steps to the pavilion towards the only two men who loved her as he did: her father and her fiancé.

"They've taken her! They've taken Elizabeth!"

"We know, Mister Turner. What we don't know is what direction they took when they left." Governor Swann was not a man given to sarcasm, but his wits had left him hours ago; the moment he learned his only child was taken, to be exact.

"What about that Jack Sparrow? He talked about the Black Pearl—"

Lieutenant Mullroy interrupted Lieutenant Murtogg,

"—Mentioned it, is more wot 'e did!"

Will turned exasperatedly to Elizabeth's fiancé.

"Well, ask him about it! Make a deal with him; he can lead us to Elizabeth!"

Commodore James Norrington looked up from the map his eyes had been devouring with such intensity and walked around the table to Will's side.

"Mister Turner, you are not a sailor; you are not a military man; you are a blacksmith. I know your feelings for Elizabeth, but…" he halted for a moment and a strange light glimmered in his eyes. "Making deals with _pirates?_"

"Might it not take a pirate to find a pirate, Commodore?" Governor Swann interjected.

"Indeed."

James knew the routes most pirates took, but even so…it might take days to find her. If Sparrow did not truly possess the knowledge they sought, and instead led them a merry goose chase to save his own skin, he could have them out to sea for weeks and never get near the _Pearl_…but perhaps, if his time were limited - given only days instead of weeks - perhaps the pirate could not then throw them so very far behind the pirates and Miss Swann? _And if he __**does**__ lead us a merry chase, I will see him strung from the yardarm_, James determined within himself.

"Very well, Mister Turner. I will speak to Sparrow." Turning a steely gaze to the bumbling Marines, the Commodore spoke sternly. "Bring _Mister_ _Sparrow_ to me."

With overeager salutes, the two ran to the jail. In short order, they returned with the grubby-looking pirate.

"Mister Sparrow-"

"_CAPTAIN Sparrow!"_

Grinding his teeth, James inhaled determinedly.

"Very well, then, _Captain,_" Somehow, the Commodore managed to inject all the sarcasm he felt into that one word. "The pirates have taken the Governor's daughter, Miss Swann. I have information that you may be able to lead us to them."

"And what do I get fer givin' said information?"

Governor Swann stepped forward.

"I am Governor Swann."

"Nice wig. Better'n old Norrie's here, says I."

James rolled his eyes and Governor Swann cleared his throat in irritation.

"Yes well. As I was saying, in exchange for leading us to them, I offer extreme leniency; and in exchange for actually finding my daughter, I offer you a full pardon."

James was visibly discontent with the idea of letting a pirate go free, but this was for Elizabeth and he could always catch the vile man another time.

"And fer this full pardon, ye'll lemme go on me merry way? Nothin' else?" Sparrow peered peculiarly at the Governor. "Seems a mite fishy, an' I don' mean like fish from the ocean, I mean fishy. A little too fishy, an' I don' have that much good experience wiff sea creatures... nor wi' this bein' let free thing..." Jack rubbed his chin, mock-thoughtful, "...not tha' I wouldn't mind, and 'sides, freedom's freedom... take what I can, eh?"

As he finished his speech, to the relief of all present, a sudden movement caught Sparrow's eye. A boy of no more than eighteen was striding forward to the new Com'dore's side. There was something vaguely familiar about the pup…

"Commodore, I insist on coming with you. I saw her being taken. It was my responsibility to save her and I failed."

"Precisely how did you manage that, _Mister_ Turner?"

_Ah, so it is him, _Jack confirmed to himself, _I'd_ _recognize that name and voice anywhere._

"I was distracted and allowed a pirate to knock me out." Will turned the color of a ripe tomato.

"Mister Turner, this is not the moment for rash action. Elizabeth will not be helped if my men are stepping over you."

"Turner, eh? Lovely name. C'n I hazard a guess tha' was yer da's fam'ly name s'well?" Jack nodded to himself, "Alrighty then, mister wigs and Turner. I shall help ye on this quest for a lass, if'n ye lemme give some terms o'me own."

The pirate swayed and looked pointedly in James's direction as the Governor nodded his approval.

Impatiently taking the hint, James offered, "We can retire to my office, _gentlemen_."

He led the way, followed by Governor Swann. The two bumbling Marines marched Sparrow in chains between them, and Turner brought up the rear.

When all were inside and the door shut behind them, all eyes turned to Jack Sparrow.

"Barbossa an' 'is men can't be slain," Jack began, with a theatrical wave of an invisible sword. "The only way to murder 'em is to git that lil' bit o'gold and chuck young Turner's blood on it. Throw this into a chest bein' stationed at Isla de Muerta, an' life'll be back."

Norrington raised a brow disbelievingly. Jack smirked at him, "Ye tried ter run 'em down a'fore, an' then wha' 'appened." James rolled his eyes and nodded for Jack to continue. "Ten years ago, m'lads, I was mu'nied upon by _Cap'n_ Barbossa. He took me ship an' left me ter die on an island somewhere. I'd love a bit 'o revenge; kill 'im off, and you sailors can 'ang the rest of 'em after Master Turner gives his rubies. Not all of it," he added hastily, as Will shot him a blazing look, "just a couple drops. Nothin' ye can't git back."

James quirked his brow. "So you really _do_ have a ship... Captain."

And on that note, a grudging partnership was forged.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Norrington lowered his spyglass. Captain Sparrow had kept his end of their bargain so far. He had taken a longboat inside the caves with Mister Turner some time ago with the intent of lifting the curse and luring the pirates into the open.

His thoughts were interrupted by the raucous laughter of drunken scum. Lifting his glass again, James spied four longboats filled with dirty pirates.

Silently he signaled for the _Dauntless_ to sail round the point. Before the pirates ever saw them, the guns were fired into their midst.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Will stepped out of the shadows just behind the pirates.

"It's not her blood you need!" He shouted over Barbossa's diatribe.

Barbossa looked at him in disbelief and annoyance. "And who might ye be, boy?"

"My name's Will Turner. I'm the son of Bootstrap Bill Turner. She is the daughter of the Governor of Port Royal, Elizabeth Swann."

Captain Sparrow, still hidden in the shadows, expelled his breath and rolled his eyes. _"Vivid entrance, Turner. M'truly amazed."_

He decided it might be time to make his move. As two pirates grabbed Will by the arms and dragged him to the dais, Jack moved stealthily along the shadowed walls until he was right behind Barbossa.

Barbossa still held Elizabeth, but reached out and wrenched Will's arm forward. Looking suspiciously between Will and Elizabeth, he muttered more to himself than anyone else, "If that be true- we can't know if that be true! What says yer not just the girl's handsome swain?"

With that, Barbossa dropped Will's arm, sliced Elizabeth's palm, and, before Will could do more than exclaim, Barbossa sliced his palm as well. Then he took the cursed coin and slammed it between their bleeding palms.

As the coin dropped into the chest, Jack stepped out of the shadows.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Barbossa stood in shock. Life had never felt so free. Breath once again filling his lungs, his heart beating in his ears, the damp of the cave sending chills through his exposed skin; all of it was as new as if he'd never felt before. Which in a sense, he hadn't.

Surveying his crew standing before him, all in a similar state of shock and pleasure, Barbossa barked out his first orders as a living man once again.

"Gents, to the Pearl! We be takin these two with us; might fetch a fair ransom!"

Barbossa, Elizabeth, and Will waited as the rest of the pirates filed out to the longboats. Will gave his kerchief to Elizabeth to stem the streaming blood running down her arm. His own hand was no better, but at least he had his bandana. As they wound the cloths around their wounds, they noticed a figure stepping from the shadows.

Hearing a click, Barbossa turned and his eyes widened in shock.

"You! You're supposed to be dead!"

Jack locked his gaze, cold as steel, onto the other pirate and grinned maliciously.

"Aye, an' yer meant to be too. Ye took me ship – thought you had it made, mate, once ye chucked me 'n me stuff overboard. Thought maybe ye'd gotten rid of ol' Jack."

Barbossa had to roll his eyes.

"But you forgot one very important thing, mate: I'm Captain Jack Sparrow."

A shot rang out.


	4. The Decision

**Chapter IV: The Decision**

**Title: His Heart's Desire**

**Author: tammsla**

**Beta: teh amazing saimejoxxers, Thank you dahling! :DDD**

**Disclaimer: If I owned POTC or James Norrington, writing is not what I would be doing ;D**

**Word Count: 317**

**Warnings: Nothing not in the movie**

**Pairings: Norribeth!**

**Summary: This is a series of one-shots. They will follow the chronological order of CotBP only, since I didn't really care for DMC or AWE. Each one-shot stands alone and proceeds from a different part of the movie. Some will have James and Elizabeth engaged already, some won't. Some may have a thread woven through it from a previous one-shot, or take up where the last left off, but they are not built on each other and are totally independent of each other :D**

**Author's note: This one came to me after I'd already written and posted chapter 3, so it is out of order with the movie; however, since it is only one page long, I hope I may be forgiven for such oversight :D**

Elizabeth felt the chains dig deep into her throat as she whirled around in the pirate's arms, his pistol pressed hard against her temple.

_He smells of rum and I know not what!_ Elizabeth prevented the distaste that wanted to curl her lip, but only just. Her preconcieved notions of the romanticism of pirates were being sorely tested. What good was this freedom she'd always associated with the breed if it meant confrontations like this with Commodore James Norrington and the Royal Navy?

"Gentlemen! M'lady……"

Staring into said Commodore's eyes, she saw his stern veneer crumble away in time with the pirates footsteps leading them closer to the water.

"You will always rem'mber this as the day that you almos' caught……"

The pistol was lifted from her temple.

"Captain"

He gripped her arm.

"Jack"

She heard the cock of the pistol being unprimed.

"_Sparrow!"_

Suddenly, she was thrust forward at the very instant Sparrow lifted the chains from her neck. As she stumbled into the Commodore's outstretched arms, she heard his voice thunder, "_Open fire!_"

As the marines took aim, Sparrow slung himself around the docks on the arm of a loading pulley. Then, landing some distance away, he started running like a drunken madman.

She didn't realize the Commodore had not released her until she heard him remarking to Leiutenant Gillette how he would hate for Mr. Sparrow to miss his appointment with the gallows.

She became aware of his lean, strong arms holding her upright in the same moment the Commodore speared her with a glance. Looking up into those green orbs, she stopped breathing. The smouldering fire in his gaze was enough to make her quickly resolve her earlier indecision toward his offer of marriage.

_Perhaps there is more to the Commodore than I have seen; perhaps he is not so stuffy after all; perhaps there is someone worth knowing under all that brocade…_


	5. The Rescue

The Rescue

**Chapter V: The Rescue**

**Title: His Heart's Desire**

**Author: tammsla**

**Beta: teh amazing saimejoxxers, You so rock chickie! :D**

**Disclaimer: Do you really think I'd spend my time writing fanfiction if I owned the franchise?**

**Word Count: 6,929**

**Warnings: A kiss. Wow. :p**

**Pairings: Norribeth!**

**Summary: This is a series of one-shots. They will follow the chronological order of CotBP only, since I didn't really care for DMC or AWE. Each one-shot stands alone and proceeds from a different part of the movie. Some will have James and Elizabeth engaged already, some won't. Some may have a thread woven through it from a previous one-shot, or take up where the last left off, but they are not built on each other and are totally independent of each other :D**

**Author's note: Oops! I'm so sorry this has taken such a long time to post; my beta actually got it back to me last week and I forgot I hadn't posted it, so don't take a pitchfork to her xD**

"'Poor Jack! How terrible for you, Jack!' Well, it is now!"

Jack stomped and snorted halfway round their little "island paradise" before stopping short.

White sails.

Blasted white Navy sails.

And a longboat filled with men who served in said Navy.

Jack groaned. "There'll be no livin wif 'er after this."

As the boat neared the shore, Jack slinked back to the fire to await his fate.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Lieutenant Gillette had no more hoisted Elizabeth up to the decks of the Dauntless than she was throwing herself into James's arms. She had yet to give him an answer, of course, since she had fallen off the battlements, been rescued by the irate pirate she had just unwillingly shared an island with, and then managed to get herself kidnapped by the pirates who left her on the island; but he was hers just the same to her mind.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

James felt his face split wide with a relieved, joyous grin. _She is safe! Thank You, God; we got to her in time!_

It was only just beginning to prickle at his conscious mind that his heart's dearest desire was snuggled against his chest. James quickly wound his arms – oh how they ached for her! - around her precious form.

"You came for me." Her eyes were not wide in wonder; rather they were serious and content, as though all had transpired just as it ought.

With that one statement, James felt every weight resting on his strong shoulders seem to lift and his face bore a look of such happiness that, as the staid and formidable Commodore melted into the happy little boy he had once been, even Sparrow had to smirk.

He reluctantly loosened his hold on Elizabeth as she turned to her flabbergasted father, seeming to pay no attention to the sailors around them, some of whom were still agog at the position she had put herself and their Commodore in – especially considering her current state of dress.

"We must go back for Will."

And with that statement, James felt the return of those same weights a thousand times over as the joy drained from his face; the happy little boy melting away while the staid and formidable Commodore returned with a look black as thunder. He released her fully from his arms and began to stride away from the steadily rising voices of his love and her father.

"Elizabeth, you are safe and we are going back to Port Royal with all possible speed."

"Father! We can not just leave him to die!"

"Then he should not have engaged in piracy!"

"Even to save me?!"

Elizabeth turned and ran frantically to forestall the Commodore as he stepped lightly up to the wheel.

"Commodore! Please do this for me…as a wedding present?"

James whirled round, first with elation and then with a sick feeling of having been shot in the stomach. _She still thinks only of him! _

The Governor stepped closer, "Elizabeth, are you…accepting Commodore Norrington's proposal?"

Staring into said Commodore's eyes, as if trying to convey some message, Elizabeth answered, "I am."

"A wedding! I love weddings – DRINKS ALL ROUND!"

_Rum-soaked pirate! Shut your mouth!_ Elizabeth's thoughts were apparent on her face, and obviously not at all charitable towards her former rescuer. At any other time, James would have laughed to see his Governor's Daughter looking so transparently uncivil toward a member of the race she held in such high admiration; but this was not a time for humor.

"Mr. Sparrow, you will accompany these fine men to the helm and give them the bearing to Isla de Muerta. You will then spend the rest of the voyage contemplating all _possible_ meanings of the phrase, 'silent as the grave'; do I make myself clear?"

Jack was no fool; he recognized the deadly calm and succinct tone of the Scourge of Piracy. James could practically see the wheels turning in his filthy mind: _P'haps bidin me time might bes' serve me in'res' now…. _

Jack gave a gold-encrusted grin and swaggered a bit before answering. "Inescapably."

James, Elizabeth, Gillette, and Governor Swann sighed as one in their exasperation before two marines led the pirate to the helm.

Sparrow disposed of for the moment, James turned his attentions to his apparent soon-to-be father-in-law.

Governor Swann gave the young Commodore a deep searching look and, content with what he saw, stepped forward with a bittersweet smile.

"Take care of her," he said quietly. Then so as to be heard by all, "I am going below. I declare all of this quite disturbs my constitution."

James gave a quick nod in answer to the Governor's softly voiced order and turning, offered his arm to the woman who had long held his heart.

"Elizabeth?"

She stepped forward, accepting the proffered arm as they turned to a section of railing far enough away from the working sailors to afford them some semblance of privacy.

"Elizabeth, I am…concerned that your answer was perhaps…less than sincere."

Elizabeth's heart was touched by the vulnerability displayed in his deep green eyes. Tenderly, one hand grasped his as she lifted her other to his face, stroking his cheek with her thumb.

"James, please trust me. I do not ask this out of love for Will; my heart lies with _you_. It was _you_ who held me the night I dreamed of my mother's passing on the voyage from England. It was _you_ who took the time to share your exploits with a precocious little girl. It was _you_ who comforted my nerves as I took my place in society. And it was _you_ who even stood between myself and the odious Lord Gillingham when he tried to steal a kiss that night in the arbour." Here, she paused to stare very carefully into James's eyes, trying to make him understand. She knew he had cause to question her veracity, and she did not begrudge his need for assurance.

"_You_ are the man I love, and _I will have no other_; but next to you, Will is my dearest friend. He has committed crimes, yes; but they were committed for the sake of saving me. He was willing to give his life for me, just as you would if it were necessary. I would not see him harmed in such a venture. And though I know you and Father would see me safe in Port Royal, there is not time enough to return to port and then set out again if you would see him any way other than freshly fished from the sea."

For a moment all James could comprehend was that Elizabeth – _his _Elizabeth – was not enamored of Turner! _She loves me! She loves __**me**__! She __**loves**__….me…_

Then the full meaning of her words began to sink in and James knew she was right. Turner was not the man who held her heart, but he was the man who had saved her from the _Pearl_. If she had loved him, James knew he would have felt an obligation; now he felt only the need to return a great favour.

Never taking his eyes from his beloved's soft gaze, James addressed his bosun.

"Mr. Otter, a little more sail if you please!"

As Elizabeth wound her arms around his neck, James felt his face split wide with another grin; this one more joyous than the first. As he took her into his arms again, they leaned closer to one another and his lips captured hers in a dance older than time…


	6. Author's Note

Sorry, this is just an AN :) I know some have wanted more chapters, but for the time being, as I am planning my wedding and buying a house, (thank You, Lord!), my muse is snoozling in the back room. When she again awakens, I shall write other happy endings. For now, though, His Heart's Desire has been accomplished :) Happily, people are still adding my story to their favorites/alerts lists, so thank you to everyone who has done so!


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